http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1014892.cms

Cops confirm Maoist-mafia nexus

IANS[ TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 08, 2005 04:08:57 PM ]


MUMBAI: Mafia gangs here are major buyers of small arms in the international market, and police here are not surprised by reports that they are now making purchases from Nepal's Maoist guerrillas.


The mafia has established links in the international drugs, arms and human trafficking circuit for several years, police officers say.

Apart from different guns, the mafia is known to buy assault rifles and huge amounts of ammunition. The underworld is known to show a preference for grenades.

However, considering the small scale of their operations, Mumbai's mafia dons do not go in for items like grenade launchers, which require a high degree of skill to use, say police officials.

Even the assassins, as hit men are known here, shoot from close range since they do not have adequate practice.

The mafia is known to trade in drugs and gold in return for weapons. Often hawala, or money laundering, channel is used to transfer money.

Mumbai's underworld is also known to have links with groups like the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) since smuggling and hawala routes overlap, police sources say.

In the past, the mafia was also linked to the Colombian drug cartel though those links have reportedly snapped due to America's war on terror.